Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

-----and express the hope that there will be a positive outcome for Ireland from that meeting. I certainly hope that there will be such a positive outcome and if there is, I hope it will be welcomed, not only by those of us who are on the Government side of the House but right across the House. Much work has gone in over a long period of time to reach the point where today, hopefully, this country will get a positive outcome from the meeting that is taking place in Brussels.

I am proposing that the House itself, in terms of its formal plenary session, will adjourn today and reconvene on 14 September. However, it is appropriate that the outcome of the summit meeting today is considered by the parliamentary system. I understand it is proposed that there will be a meeting of the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform on Tuesday at 4 o'clock to discuss the outcome of the summit. As the House will be aware, every Member of the House is entitled to attend meetings of committees. If it is the case that the number of Members interested in attending that committee is more than what would be accommodated in the committee room, we can have that meeting of the committee here in the Chamber so that any Member of the House who wants to discuss the outcome of today's summit, from which, hopefully, there will be satisfactory conclusions, can do so here in the House. We can use the Chamber for the meeting of that committee and Members can be here in the Chamber at 4 o'clock on Tuesday next.

See this speech in context